A Little Amish-Founded Clinic Has Identified More Rare Genetic Disorders Than Any Other. These 2 August Auctions Support It
Auctions To Support The DDC Clinic Are Happening in Spartansburg, Pennsylvania (August 7) and Middlefield, Ohio (August 28)
Two benefit auctions this August support the DDC Clinic in Middlefield, Ohio – an Amish-founded nonprofit that has identified more rare genetic disorders than any clinic in the world.
In the late 1990s, a group of Amish mothers in Geauga County, Ohio – whose special-needs children met regularly for therapy sessions – started comparing notes on shared patterns in their kids’ conditions.
That led to a 1998 visit to Dr. Holmes Morton’s Clinic for Special Children in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Morton examined the children over two days but told the families the disorders he was seeing were different from what he was accustomed to in the Lancaster County area. They would need to start their own clinic back home.
The founding story has one decidedly Amish note: at a follow-up meeting at the home of Jonas Yoder, a hat belonging to one of the Amish men was passed around, and $50 was collected to get the work started.
By November 1999, the Das Deutsch Center for Special Needs Children was established. The founders were specific about the kind of medical staff they wanted to hire – someone who was not “grouchy,” who would “take the time to listen and hear patients out,” and who understood that “moms and dads know their children best.”
In 2002, they hired Dr. Heng Wang. In his first year, Wang made more than 400 house calls while working out of a small attic office.
Newly trained as a pediatrician, he has recalled asking himself how he’d meet the families’ expectations – until an Amish carpenter gave him a piece of advice he says has stayed with him ever since:
“Don’t worry doctor, we do not expect you to do too much. We just ask you to do your part, and let God do the rest.”
Dr. Wang is still with the clinic today and serves as Medical Director. Today the DDC Clinic serves more than 2,500 patients across 38 states, plus Canada, New Zealand, and Asia. Roughly 90% are Amish or Mennonite.
DDC Clinic’s laboratory currently provides diagnostic testing for more than 270 rare genetic disorders, and its research team has identified several new genetic disorders never before described in medical literature.
August 2026 Benefit Auctions
In more than two decades of operation, the clinic has never turned away a family that couldn’t pay. As executive director Eli Miller said at a chamber of commerce presentation earlier this year, “We see more disorders in this little clinic than in any other clinic in the world.”
Two benefit auctions this August help support the clinic’s ability to do this. Here is the info on each if you’d like to attend, enjoy an Amish auction atmosphere, and contribute to a great cause:
Spartansburg, Pennsylvania — Friday, August 7, 2026 (14th Annual)
- Location: Spartansburg Community Fair Grounds, 214 Jefferson Street
- Time: Auction starts at 4:00 PM, held indoors, rain or shine
- What’s on offer: A 24-foot by 32-foot pole building built on the buyer’s prepared site, a hunting blind, and raffle tickets for a Kamado Joe grill
- Raffles: A single buggy or $3,500 cash, a poly patio set, and a $1,500 shopping spree — tickets are $20 each or 6 for $100
- Food: Pizza and wings, burgers and fries, homemade ice cream and desserts
Middlefield, Ohio — Friday, August 28, 2026 (26th Annual)
- Location: Maple Country Farms, at the intersection of Newcomb and Nash Road
- Time: Auction starts at 2:00 PM; lunch and dinner served from 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM
- What’s on offer: 25 feet of custom cabinets and countertops, a 16-foot by 20-foot timber frame pavilion, and a 32-foot by 48-foot building to be built on the buyer’s prepared site
- Auction rings: Multiple rings running live auction, silent auction, and raffles featuring quilts, home décor, furniture, buggies, harnesses and tack, tools, and farm supplies
- Food: Barbecue chicken, soft pretzels, and baked goods
For more information or to donate directly, visit ddcclinic.org. The Geauga County Maple Leaf published a helpful background piece on the clinic’s work earlier this year.
Amazing!
This is an incredible story Eric. A lot of people may think of the Amish as backward or uneducated because of their chosen lifestyle. It’s amazing that a small band of Amish people with 8th grade educations can start up and implement such an intricate medical clinic. Imagine serving so many families worldwide and uncovering rare genetic disorders that more sophisticated hospitals have not been able to do. God has surely blessed this endeavor and led the founders to the exact people to treat and give hope to these families. How wonderful!